


This Little Light of Mine

by ClassyFangirl_TRASH



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: #TonyStarkDeservesBetter, Bucky Barnes Feels, Bucky Barnes Needs a Hug, Just leave them be, Protective James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Protective Pepper Potts, Protective Steve Rogers, Protective Tony Stark, Steve Rogers Feels, Tony Feels, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, they've been through a lot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-29
Updated: 2019-09-29
Packaged: 2020-11-01 09:54:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,322
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20813204
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ClassyFangirl_TRASH/pseuds/ClassyFangirl_TRASH
Summary: "Tony should have known this would happen. He already knew that as soon as they knew, they'd be out for blood. That they would come in, ready to tell Tony why this was such a bad idea. He was right for the most part."ORTony Stark deserves better, let him live his life in peace.





	This Little Light of Mine

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first work on AO3, but I've been writing for a hot minute, so constructive criticism is encouraged.
> 
> All mistakes are my own.

Tony should have known this would happen. He already knew that as soon as they knew, they'd be out for blood. That they would come in, ready to tell Tony why this was such a bad idea. He was right for the most part.

~~~

"What the hell are you thinking?" Ah, yes. Pepper and Rhodey were here. At 8 in the goddamn morning. God, Tony needed more coffee for this. Maybe some more cuddles from Steve and Bucky too.

"Tony, answer me! What the hell is your reasoning on this one?" Leave it to Pepper to ask the hard questions. Not hard to answer, but it's going to be hard for her and Rhodes to accept.

"I love them."

Steve and Bucky walked in, fresh from their morning run. Great, more fuel to the fire.

"Great timing, boys." Tony says as he smiles and kisses them both. "We were just talking about you."

Pepper looks about ready to blow.

Rhodey isn't far behind. "What the hell, Tony?!"

Bucky looks like deer caught in headlights. Steve looks kind of like he wants to throw up.

"I love them." Tony says simply.

Pepper goes to say something, but Rhodey beats her to it.

"Tony, they're bad for you! Steve fought you and half the Avengers. He almost fucking killed you!" Steve winced at this, looking like he wanted to cry. "Over what? Some stupid accords that actually weren't that bad of an idea, and could've been negotiated? They have a track record of hurting you! Why can't you see that?" Rhodey sounded both seething mad and like he was begging Tony to see it his way.

Pepper finally started talking. Tony kind of wishes she didn't. "Tony. Both me and Rhodey were here after the fight between you and Steve. We were here to pick up the pieces afterwards. Steve left you to die after he put his shield in your chest." After that, she turned her eyes, burning with a cold fire, on Bucky. "Bucky murdered your parents. You may not remember that, because that little detail sent you into a drinking binge that lasted 2 days and a trip to the med wing." Bucky flinched and backed away.

"I- I'm just going to go. I'm not making anything better by being here." Bucky turned to Tony, tears already threatening to spill over, but he held his head high, trying not to break. "I love you, Tones. Please, just remember I love you and I won't ever stop loving you." His voice cracked and a tear actually ran down his cheek.

Tony couldn't help but pull him into a crushing hug and whisper in his ear, "I know, sweetheart. I love you too and that won't ever change."

Bucky pulled away and actually looked kind of afraid when he threw a glance over at where Pepper and Rhodes were standing. He looked at Steve over Tony's shoulder, then back at Tony, then again at Pepper and Rhodey. He shrank back after looking at them and practically ran from the room. After the door slammed behind him, Tony looked at Steve, who was still looking at where Bucky had disappeared from the room. Since he was looking, he saw the exact moment Steve's eyes filled with both fire and fear.

Tony knew Steve wanted fight with both Pepper and Rhodey defend Tony and Bucky, but also that he wanted to follow Bucky and make sure he was okay. So, he made the decision for Steve.

"Steve. Go. Go make sure he's okay." Steve nodded and headed in the direction of the door, but before he even took two steps, he turned to face the terrifying duo that was Pepper Potts and James Rhodes.

"Don't blame Bucky. Please. It wasn't his fault. Hydra did terrible things to him and forced him to- to kill Tony's parents." He stopped and swallowed. "None of it was his fault, so please, don't be angry with him. The only reason he fought was because I was fighting. Don't be angry at Tony either. He- he just- Just don't be. Please. If you need someone to blame, blame me. It was all my fault. Just- don't be angry with them." With that he turned to Tony. "I love you, Tony. We can talk later, if you want. Just know that I love you." He turned and left before anyone else could say anything.

As the door closed behind him, Tony faced Pepper and Rhodey. They looked... shocked, to say the least, so Tony took advantage of that.

"You're not being fair to them. They've gone through hell. They've had to fight and fight and fight, just to be here, just to stay together. They're a little broken, but I am too. We're broken together. They help me through nightmares and panic attacks. They are why I don't drink anymore. Why I haven't had a drop since we reconciled. I help them too. They don't know which way is up sometimes, when they wake up and they're "not way back when," two boys from Brooklyn, Bucky and Steve, inseparable on both playground and battlefield. It's good for me, helps me put one puzzle piece at a time together, for all of us. I love them." He finished with a sigh. He didn't know what he'd do without his boys to pull him out of his head.

"I... I don't know what to say, Tony." Rhodey started, "But I do know that they've hurt you in the past. Not to mention, both of them have their fair share of problems. You don't need that."

"Tony, you said it yourself, they're broken, and so are you. You need to focus on yourself, get better before you go charging into the next charity case." Pepper tried to reason. She wasn't very convincing, didn't seem all that convinced herself.

"You're not listening. We help each other because they care about me and I care about them. They take care of me when I spend too much time in the lab. They understand I need my space, but they pull me back when they sense I'm wandering too far into my head. They aren't a charity case. They didn't even want my help in the first place, but once they knew that it allowed me to focus on something that was actually useful, that had immediate positive impact, and realized that helped, they opened themselves up to me. I'm broken, so are they, but sometimes you need to be broken to let the light in, and they shine like the sun." Tony wasn't backing down, he couldn't. Not when he knew he was right. They just needed to see it his way. So he gave them a choice.

"I need them and they need me. So either you can accept that they are here to stay, for as long as they stay, or you can walk away now." And that's exactly what Tony did. He left the room.

~~~

He found Steve and Bucky in the room they all decided to share. Bucky was sleeping, or at the very least, resting with his eyes closes, on Steve's shoulder. Steve, on the other hand, was staring at the wall. The TV was playing some sitcom re-runs that they'd seen before. Tony sighed. He stripped to his underwear and climbed into the bed.

He laid down behind Bucky, but not before leaning over him to kiss Steve, who had turned back to lay down with them. He threw his arm over Bucky to hold Steve's hand. "I love you. Both of you. I'd walk to through hell, just to stay by your sides." Tony whispered.

They'd be okay, eventually. They'd heal, with gold between the cracks left by the fights they'd lost and by the people they didn't save. They'd heal.

But for right now, in this moment in the dark, for these broken boys, the light shone through.

**Author's Note:**

> A bit angsty, amiright? Sorry if Pepper and Rhodey come off a bit asshole-ish, I love them both, but this came to my head and I was like "gotta write, gotta write, gotta write." Nevermind the fact I have an essay due and like a bazillion math assignments.
> 
> Anywho, comments and kudos highly encouraged.
> 
> Come tumble with me: sane-but-crazy OR moregaymarvelpls


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